- Bobi, a record-breaking canine who was stated to have lived till 31, is now having his age questioned.
- The Guinness World Records stated on Tuesday that it suspended Bobi’s title whereas it investigates.
- Bobi died in October after being topped the world’s oldest canine in February 2023.
In February 2023, the Guinness World Records introduced that it had discovered the world’s oldest dwelling canine and the oldest canine ever recorded.
Bobi, a Rafeiro do Alentejo in Portugal, was bestowed the accolade on the staggering age of, in line with his proprietor, 30.
Bobi then died in October, making him 31 years old on the time. But the Guinness World Records is now placing his title on maintain amid a wave of questions over the legitimacy of his declare.
“While our assessment is ongoing, now we have determined to quickly pause functions on each the document titles for oldest canine dwelling and ever till all of our findings are in place and have been communicated,” a spokesperson instructed the Associated Press in a Tuesday report.
Indeed, dwelling to 31 would have made Bobi the canine equal of round 170 years old, per the American Veterinary Medical Association’s calculating methods.
Dogs of his breed have a life expectancy of 12 to 14 years.
Bobi’s proprietor, Leonal Costa, instructed the Guinness World Records he credited Bobi’s longevity to a diet of human food and by no means being chained up or leashed.
However, observers say there are discrepancies in photos of Bobi from 1999 — when he would have been 7 — and 2022, noting that his paws are otherwise coloured within the old and new photographs.
Bobi’s purported age was additionally challenged by Danny Chambers, a council member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, who instructed The Guardian that “not a single certainly one of my veterinary colleagues imagine Bobi was truly 31 years old.”
Chambers’ organization is a regulatory physique within the UK that oversees 1000’s of veterinary practices.
Bobi’s age is registered in Portugal’s authorities database, which Guinness World Records stated it checked earlier than giving out the award.
However, an investigation by WIRED reported that an official stated the database entry was primarily based on data supplied by Costa, the canine’s proprietor. The outlet wrote a number of instances that Costa didn’t reply to its questions.
Bobi’s document got here simply after Spike, a 23-year-old Chihuahua, was named the oldest dwelling canine by the Guinness World Records. Two weeks after Spike’s document was introduced, Bobi dethroned the Chihuahua.
Per the AP, Guinness World Records’s spokesperson stated the organization was conscious of the general public skepticism towards Bobi’s document and that it acquired notes from veterinarians involved concerning the validity of his declare.
They instructed The Guardian that Bobi’s title was suspended, not taken away from him, as “no motion has been taken about any document holders but.”
If Bobi’s document is stripped from him, the accolade of the world’s oldest-ever canine would return to Bluey, an Australian cattle canine who lived to 29 years and 5 months old from 1910 to 1939, per the Guinness World Records.
The Guinness World Records’ press staff didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark despatched exterior common business hours.
